Age

Trend over time

Gallbladder cancer is not among the 20 most common cancers in the UK, accounting for less than 1% of all new cancer cases (2015).[1-4]

In males in the UK, gallbladder cancer is not among the 20 most common cancers (less than 1% of all new male cancer cases). In females in the UK it is not among the 20 most common cancers (less than 1% of all new female cancer cases).

28% of gallbladder cancer cases in the UK are in males, and 72% are in females.

Gallbladder cancer incidence rates (European age-standardised (AS) rates ) are similar to the UK average in all the UK constituent countries.

Gallbladder Cancer (C23), Number of New Cases, Crude and European Age-Standardised (AS) Incidence Rates per 100,000 Population, UK, 2015

Data were provided by the Welsh Cancer Intelligence and Surveillance Unit, Health Intelligence Division, Public Health Wales on request, October 2017. Similar data can be found here: http://www.wcisu.wales.nhs.uk.

About this data

Gallbladder cancer incidence is strongly related to age, with the highest incidence rates being in older people. In the UK in 2013-2015, on average each year more than half (52%) of new cases were in people aged 75 and over.[1-4]

Age-specific incidence rates rise steeply from around age 50-54 and drop slightly in the 90+ age group in females only. The highest rates are in the 85 to 89 age group for males and females.

Incidence rates are significantly lower in males than females in a number of (mainly older) age groups. The gap is widest at age 55 to 59, when the age-specific incidence rate is 4.1 times lower in males than females.

Gallbladder Cancer (C23), Average Number of New Cases per Year and Age-Specific Incidence Rates per 100,000 Population, UK, 2013-2015

95% LCL and 95% UCL are the 95% lower and upper confidence limits around the AS Rate

For gallbladder cancer, like most cancer types, incidence increases with age. This largely reflects cell DNA damage accumulating over time. Damage can result from biological processes or from exposure to risk factors. A drop or plateau in incidence in the oldest age groups often indicates reduced diagnostic activity perhaps due to general ill health.

Data were provided by the Welsh Cancer Intelligence and Surveillance Unit, Health Intelligence Division, Public Health Wales on request, October 2017. Similar data can be found here: http://www.wcisu.wales.nhs.uk.

About this data

Gallbladder cancer European age-standardised (AS) incidence rates for males and females combined increased by 51% in the UK between 1993-1995 and 2013-2015.[1-4] The increase was larger in females than in males.

For males, gallbladder cancer AS incidence rates in the UK increased by 39% between 1993-1995 and 2013-2015. For females, gallbladder cancer AS incidence rates in the UK increased by 60% between 1993-1995 and 2013-2015.

Over the last decade in the UK (between 2003-2005 and 2013-2015), gallbladder cancer AS incidence rates for males and females combined increased by 52%. In males AS incidence rates increased by 51%, and in females rates increased by 55%.

Gallbladder cancer incidence rates have increased overall in some broad adult age groups in males and females combined in the UK since the early 1990s, but have remained stable in others.[1-4] Rates in 25-49s have remained stable, in 50-59s have remained stable, in 60-69s have increased by 46%, in 70-79s have increased by 58%, and in 80+s have increased by 56%.

For gallbladder cancer, like most cancer types, incidence trends largely reflect changing prevalence of risk factors and improvements in diagnosis and data recording. Recent incidence trends are influenced by risk factor prevalence in years past, and trends by age group reflect risk factor exposure in birth cohorts.

Data were provided by the Welsh Cancer Intelligence and Surveillance Unit, Health Intelligence Division, Public Health Wales on request, October 2017. Similar data can be found here: http://www.wcisu.wales.nhs.uk.

About this data

The lifetime risk of developing gallbladder cancer is around 1 in 1,310 for men and around 1 in 550 for women, in 2012 in the UK.[1]

The lifetime risk for gallbladder cancer has been calculated on the assumption that the possibility of having more than one diagnosis of gallbladder cancer over the course of a lifetime is very low (‘Current Probability’ method).[2]

See also

References

Lifetime risk estimates calculated by the Statistical Information Team at Cancer Research UK. Based on data provided by the Office of National Statistics, ISD Scotland, the Welsh Cancer Intelligence and Surveillance Unit and the Northern Ireland Cancer Registry, on request, December 2013 to July 2014.

Cancer stats explained

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